A Bright Smile And The Sad eyes
by The Pheonix1710
Summary: When an incident forces Naruto to finally tell his friends of his 'burden', he gets much more than he barged in for and much more than what he ever expected to get. One-Shot. COMPLETED


**Summary: When an incident forces Naruto to finally tell his friends of his 'burden', he gets much more than he barged in for and much more than what he ever expected to get. One-Shot. COMPLETED**

 **It's Just a silly one-shot. It's about Naruto when he finally allows his mask to fall, and his friends, see it and question it.**

 **So, this is supposed to take place after the Chunnin exam but Sasuke never defected.**

 **Personally, I don't think it's that great. But, whatever. I'll let you guys be the judges.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters.**

* * *

 **Bright Smile And The Sad Eyes**

One-Shot;

Naruto Uzumaki was happily running around the village, in the direction of the training ground, to meet his team.

He was spotting a big grin on his face, and he was intentionally ignoring the whispers and glares he was receiving from the villagers, who were rather put out and irritated with his apparent indifference and lack of caring.

Though, if you were to look closely, you could see his grin faltering slightly, and his eyes dimming a little.

But of course, nobody took notice. As expected. Not that they'd care either way.

It took a full 5 minutes before he finally arrived at the training ground, to see his two teammates already waiting for him.

Sasuke was leaning against a tree, his arms crossed over his chest. His face was as emotionless as it always was. And Sakura was right beside him, talking, trying to engage him in the one-way conversation she had going on. Though, she eventually gave up, as it was quite clear she wasn't going to get a response.

As Naruto made his presence known, it wasn't long before Sakura was at his side, slamming her fist on his head, while shouting, and right next to his ear, for Kami's sake!

"Where have you been, you idiot?! You're late!" Naruto flinched, though he quickly covered it up by grinning, as he muttered quietly under his breath.

"I'm not late...Sensei isn't even here yet..." Sakura raised a delicate eyebrow.

"You said something?" She asked, but Naruto quickly shook his head, walking up to the tree Sasuke was leaning on. The Uchiha opened an eye to look at him.

"Why are you late _dope_? You overslept again? Or did you forget we were meeting?" He taunted. Naruto grew a vain.

"What was that, _teme_?" He growled. The Uchiha merely smirked, as he continued his taunting,

"You heard me. Or are you deaf too perhaps?"

"You wanna fight, bastard?!"

"Yeah, right. Like the dead last could ever beat me in a fight." Sasuke said arrogantly. Naruto was about to attack him when he was distracted by the pain he suddenly felt on his head, could see Sakura retract her hand from where she'd hit him.

"You _idiot_! How could a dead last like you ever beat Sasuke? Sasuke is perfect! He is everything you're _not_ , dead last! I don't even get why you passed to become a ninja! You're not worthy enough to be on the same team as Sasuke!" She all but screamed, obnoxiously.

Naruto flinched at the harsh words.

Sasuke and Sakura expected him to blow up at them, be angry or say _something_.

But they didn't expect this at all.

Naruto was no longer grinning, and as he looked up at them, they nearly fell down on the ground in shock at the amount of sadness they saw in them.

How could one person border so much sadness in them? They didn't think it was possible.

Naruto averted his eyes to the ground and when he spoke, his voice was nothing but a soft whisper.

"Yeah, I guess you're right Sakura...I _am_ nothing but trouble, am I..?" And with that, he turned his back to them and he ran away.

The two teammates just stood there for a moment, in dim surprise, looking at his retreating back, both with frowns on their faces, both wondering the same thing; had they finally gone too far?

They shared a concerned look, before nodding, as if they understood what the other meant simply from that.

The turned around and ran the other way. They knew what they had to do.

They were going to find the others, and they were going to solve this.

* * *

He ran and ran, and he continued running. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him.

He had to get away.

From the whispers, from their glares, from their hatred, from his teammates. He just had to get away from everything.

He couldn't bear it anymore. It was all too much.

So he did the only thing he could do, the one thing he'd done practically his whole life, the one thing he was actually good at.

He ran. He didn't know where, but he didn't care either at that exact moment.

He just knew he had to get away.

He ran as fast as he could. He ran till he couldn't run any longer, till his lungs were on fire and his legs so tired, he was ready to collapse.

Eventually, he came to a stop, and it was only then he noticed that he had run all the way to the Hokage Monument. It's where he'd always gone when he was younger when he wanted to be left all alone.

They weren't actually allowed up here, but he didn't really care. He walked to the edge of the second Hokage's head and looked down at the village, sadness in his eyes, mixed with a little anger.

He sat down, drawing his knees up to his chest, as he wrapped his arms around them. The tears he had tried to suppress for so many years finally fell from his eyes.

Why did they hate him? What did he do? Yes, he is well aware he had the Kyuubi sealed inside him, thanks to Mizuki, that damn traitor, but that didn't mean he actually was the fox.

Why didn't _they_ see that?

He was only a baby when the attack happened. An infant. A child. He couldn't possibly have done that, even if he wanted to. He didn't even have a say in the matter. He didn't choose this life. He didn't ask for a stupid fox to be sealed inside him.

He didn't ask for _anything_. He only wanted to live a normal life. He only wanted to live like any other child. Happy with a family.

But no. He couldn't ever have that. He didn't have a family. His parents are dead.

It wasn't fair! _Life_ wasn't fair! Why couldn't _he_ have that? Why did they have to ruin his life? It just wasn't fair. But he knew better than most, that life, in general, wasn't supposed to be easy.

He was brought back to reality, however, when he heard a twist snapping behind him and he spun around. To say he was surprised would be an understatement.

Behind him were, what they were now called, the Konoha 12.

Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Lee, Neji, Tenten...They were all there.

They were looking at him, as they moved closer.

He quickly got over his shock and he had enough sense to realize that he had tear tracks on his cheeks and he imagined how he must look.

His eyes must be red and puffy.

He turned around, quickly wiping his eyes on his sleeves as he stood up abruptly. And when he turned to face them again, there wasn't any evidence of crying left, the smile back on his face, and the act was so _good_ , they would've believed it if they didn't know better.

"What are you guys doing here?" He asked, his voice cheery, if a little raspy, and they wondered if he's always been this good at hiding his emotions.

It seemed like it now, now that they knew it was only an act, but he's always been easy to anger, and they wondered how much of it was fake and how much was real.

They exchanged a few glances, perhaps wondering who should speak first.

Eventually, it was Tenten who managed to work up her courage first and she stepped forward.

"Well...Sasuke and Sakura told us what happened, and we thought we should check on you to see if you were okay..." Naruto looked at them for a moment, before he grinned.

"I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. I just had a bad day." He replied back and Tenten bit her lip. She looked at the others for guidance and Hinata decided to help her out.

She took a timid step forward.

"Y-you don't need to pretend you're okay Naruto. W-we just want to help." Her voice was soft in the following silence; it wouldn't have done much difference if she were to scream it out.

The smile was wiped from his face so fast, she almost took a step back at the suddenly hostile expression on his face, although it wasn't directed at them, but she was feeling particularly brave today so she stood her ground and she didn't move.

There was an uncomfortable silence for a second or two before Naruto sighed heavily, turning away from his friends to stare at the horizon instead, glancing over the village.

He didn't speak and when it became clear he wasn't going to, Sakura took that as her chance to say what she wanted to say.

"Look Naruto, I'm sorry for what I said and the way I acted. I didn't really mean it. And I'm sorry for hitting you…" She spoke shamefully and guiltily and Naruto didn't have the heart to turn the apology down, so when he turned to look at her, they were all a little surprised at the soft smile on his lips, so unlike any other they've ever seen on him and they were caught off guard at the sight of it.

"It's okay Sakura." And the way he spoke, his tone of voice, it was all so different from what they're used to. He would have fooled them with his act if his eyes didn't have that sad quality to them as they do now.

His posture, his expression, his voice, his smile, his eyes…they weren't used to this side of Naruto. In fact, they didn't even know it existed.

He's always been this strong and stubborn and happy and loyal person, it was hard to imagine him being anything else. He always thought of others before himself, put himself in danger constantly to save those he cared about.

He was that type of person people looked up to. The type that could light up a room with his smile, with a word, with his voice. With his mere presence, people could find strength because he was watching and they didn't want to embarrass or humiliate themselves in front of him.

He always encouraged, he didn't care about status or blood or bloodline.

He was the type of person that people could respect, that deserved respect and so much more. Was it all fake? Was that a part of his act?

They didn't want to think so, not with that, but the smiles and his happy front, it was probably a safe bet to say that was part of it, as much it pained them to admit it.

They wondered what had to be so bad that he felt he needed to hide behind another persona just to feel safe and protected. It took a broken person to be able to do that and they couldn't help but wonder what could have happened.

There was another moment of silence, this one much longer than the first, but it was Ino who decided she needed to break it.

"What's wrong Naruto? Why were you crying?" Naruto snapped his head to look at her, apparently startled by her voice, before grinning at them, another _fake_ , _fake_ , _stupid_ grin that meant _nothing_ and _everything_.

"Nothing is wrong. I said I was fine. And I wasn't crying." Yeah right, like they were going to believe that for a second.

"Don't lie to us Naruto. Please. We're your friends, we just want to help." It was Choji this time, but Naruto didn't reply other than dropping his grin and sighing, apparently tired by their questioning and knowing full well he wouldn't get out of there before they got their answers.

He didn't speak and it was begging to unnerve his friends who were so used to his bickering and loud voice, where the problem was actually getting him to shut up, but now they were trying to get him to open up.

It would be hilarious in any other situation, but as it was now, they could reflect on it later.

He continued his silence and it wasn't long before Kiba stepped up, with Akamaru in tow.

"Come 'on Naruto. Tell us what's wrong. I'm sure we'll be able to help. That's what friends are for, right?" He grinned at the end, trying to lighten the mood and obviously hoping for some kind of reaction, but Naruto didn't do much other than chuckle.

But it wasn't his normal laugh. This one was bitter and resentful, a sound which they never wished to hear again, _especially_ coming from him.

"I doubt you'd be able to do much, Kiba."

Kiba's smile dropped, a frown taking over instead as he pondered his words in confusion.

"We wouldn't know unless we tried, right?" Neji spoke up for the first time, but Naruto shook his head, insistently.

"It's no use. I know for a fact there's not much you could do." It was quite obvious he didn't want to talk about it, and they didn't want to push, but they couldn't help but be disappointed.

Maybe Naruto didn't really trust them after all.

But seeing their disappointed expressions, Naruto sighed, was certain he'd regret saying this, but he did it anyway. "But if you really want to know, then I'll tell you."

Their faces light up again and Naruto felt guilty for putting them down in the first place.

As he turned back to stare at the village and the setting sun, he asked them, "What do you want to know?" And it was Sasuke who answered for all of them.

"Why were you sad? Why were you crying?" He asked it softly and they all startled a little at his tone of voice, was quite certain they'd never heard him like that before.

Naruto was quiet a while, thinking how to best answer the question and where he should start, and his friends let him think, waiting patiently for him to finish.

Finally, Naruto sighed.

"I just…" He paused for a second before he started over again. "You know, the villagers…" He paused again and his friends didn't push, for which he was grateful.

He tried once more. "The villagers don't really like me, you know? You've noticed, haven't you?" They nodded along with him, frowning as they tried to see where this was going.

"They hate me, actually. They'd probably celebrate if I were to die on a mission." Their eyes widened a little at this statement.

They knew Naruto wasn't especially liked by the popularity of the village - was a little hard _not_ to notice the resentment in the air - but they didn't think it was _that_ bad that they wanted him dead.

What did Naruto do to deserve this? Did he even do something at all? They'd all just assumed it was mostly because of his pranks, but if that was the case, then it shouldn't be so bad.

"I know what you're thinking." They snapped back to attention at his voice, but when they looked up, Naruto wasn't looking at them. He was still staring off in the distance, over the village and the horizon and the sun that was almost down.

"You're thinking, 'what did I do to deserve this?' 'What happened and why?' Right? You're curious."

Of course, they were curious. In fact, they were dying to know, but instead of saying anything, they remained silent, only nodding along to show they were still listening, even though he wasn't actually looking at them.

"I didn't get it either, in the beginning. I didn't know, I had no idea. I tried to find out, but it didn't matter what I did, because they would never answer me." It was like Naruto was in his own little world now, talking but not registering it. Just automatically.

But then Naruto turned around, so they could now see his face and it was _different_.

This wasn't a mask.

There was no happy smile to be found. There were no tears, nothing to indicate he would cry anytime soon. It was blank, devoid of all and every emotion, and it was weird, 'cause they'd never seen that look on his face before.

He continued talking though, in that soft deadpan voice of his that he's been using the last 20 minutes.

"But now I do. I get it. I know the reason. I wished I didn't." He didn't say anything else as he turned his back to them again.

They were silent, trying to process everything that's been spoken, grasp their heads around the confusion it caused. After another moment, it was Lee who eventually spoke, breaking the silence, but even he was different, no sign of his usual bright smile or his screams of 'Youth'.

In fact, he's been surprisingly quiet throughout the whole exchange.

"Then, could you tell us the reason, Naruto?"

He didn't answer. They didn't push.

They knew that if they persisted, pushed, forced him to answer, then he wouldn't, he wouldn't tell them anything and they'd just be forcing him away from them and they didn't want that.

They needed to give him his space, let him use all the time he wants, but they'd be there, however long that would be, they'd be there to listen, because that's what friends do.

But instead of answering the question, Naruto said something entirely different. "They tried to kill me, did you know?"

They exchanged a few glances in bewilderment, and surprise.

Naruto's voice was distant, unclear from reality, and it was like he was trapped in his own head, in some form of memory, perhaps. He didn't seem to realize what he was saying, or that he was speaking at all.

He continued though, taking no notice of their stares. "They tried to kill me, several times in fact. They enjoyed it. They hoped I would die. But I always disappointed, for I always survived." He gave a small chuckle, but they failed to realize the humor in it.

"But it wasn't just assassinations. They used every moment they could to torture me, to use whatever means they had. They kidnapped me once, you know?"

They wished he would stop talking. They didn't think they could bear to hear any more. It was horrifying enough as it is, they didn't want any details.

But it was like they were frozen, they couldn't move or talk, so they had no other choice than to listen, because Naruto was too far gone to stop himself.

"They kidnapped me and they stabbed me. 20 times, with kunais' in 13 different places on my body. It hurt like hell, worse than you could imagine, but I didn't scream, I never screamed, because that would mean I gave up, and I never gave up."

They tried to stop him from saying anything more, but he didn't listen and he continued.

"I didn't scream, that is, until they decided to burn me alive."

At that statement, there were several horrified gasps, some covering their mouths with their hands, some looking away with clenched fists, but all of them looked decidedly sick.

"That is when I could no longer be still and I screamed. I yelled and I yelled and I yelled, but no one _cared_." Here, his expression changed, and his face twisted into something ugly as his voice took on a dark turn, sounding angry, the first real emotion he's showed in a while, as he continued his next line.

"They _laughed_. They laughed and they mocked, even when I was burning. They enjoyed it all, they enjoyed watching me writhe and scream in pain. There was no mercy. It was a miracle I had even survived, by the time someone noticed I was gone, I'd been burning for 3 hours. I was 8."

Hinata almost fainted right on the spot at that, but through some strong force of will, she managed to remain standing, though her eyes had tears in them and she was covering her mouth with her hands, which were shaking so badly she wouldn't be surprised if they fell off.

The others weren't much better off, shaking, staring at him in total shock and they were all so very horrified.

How _could someone do that to a child?!_

It was wrong in every way; it just wasn't right. It was monstrous. It was inhumane.

Why? Why did that happen to Naruto, of all people? If it was one person who least deserved it, it was Naruto. Why was it always him?

Why do bad things keep happening to good people? Naruto was the greatest of them all, what did he do to deserve this?

But he wasn't finished yet, it seemed.

"The ANBU who found me took me to the hospital. They didn't want to treat me, but when the Third Hokage appeared, they had no choice. My skin was peeled off. I was nothing but skin and bones, and it was so much blood on me, that had I been an ordinary human, I would have died. In fact, I would have died within 20 minutes of the burning. "

He continued as though he didn't notice the horrified stares of his friends. _How_ could he talk so casually about _being burned alive?!_

"I appeared lucky, my hair grew out, I got my skin back."

They wanted to stop him, but it seemed they had temporarily lost their voice.

"There's more too, you know?"

Oh god, _there was more?!_ No, absolutely not.

"They-"

"Naruto." It was Shikamaru who'd spoken up, seemed to be the only one who could actually speak. He was pale and uncomposed; it was a rare sight indeed. But considering the circumstances, he was allowed to be a little emotional, even if that wasn't his nature.

And he appeared to be better off than his friends, at least.

But it didn't seem like Naruto heard him. "I was always _hurting_ -"

"Naruto."

"And-"

"Naruto!" Shikamaru raised his voice, loud enough to silence him. They watched as Naruto gained some life back in his eyes and he seemed to come back to himself, for which they were all extremely grateful.

They didn't know how much more of it they could take.

Naruto also seemed to realize what had happened, what he'd said and his eyes grew wide in horror.

"i-i-" He stuttered, couldn't quite seem to find the right words. "I-im sorry. I-I don't know what came over me. I didn't-"

"It's okay, Naruto." It was Shikamaru again, his voice soft as he looked at the distressed boy before him. But he shook his insistently and violently.

"No, it's not! I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said all that! I don't know _why_ I did that! I-I just-"

"No Naruto, _listen_ to me." Shikamaru broke in sternly and Naruto was effectively silenced. " _It's okay._ Don't worry about it. Not your fault, alright?" He finished with a softer tone and Naruto nodded hesitantly.

He looked at the ground shamefully as he whispered again, despite what Shikamaru just said. "Sorry…" Shikamaru only sighed slightly in return, muttering back.

"It's okay."

They were silent then, the wind blowing around them. At least it was until Shikamaru finally voiced something he'd noticed with Naruto's last line.

"Naruto…" He appeared slightly hesitant, as though unsure of how to question it, but when said boy nodded for him to continue, he did. "You said 'if you were an ordinary human', what did you mean, exactly?"

They could all see Naruto stiffen and they frowned as they also thought about it. What _did_ he mean with that? Wasn't he human or what?

Naruto turned away from them, turning his head to the side, but not turning away. He sighed slightly, so quiet they almost didn't hear it and they could detect a slight tremor in his voice when he spoke again.

"You'd hate me if I told you."

Surprisingly, it was Shino who spoke next.

"Believe me when I say Naruto, there's nothing you could do that would make us hate you. Why? Because you're our friend and that's not what friends' do." it was said with his usual factual, monotone voice, but there was no doubt he meant every word.

They nodded along with him and Naruto stared at them in surprise, unused to this kindness he was shown. A small smile made its way onto his face before he turned away again.

He was silent for a minute or two before he eventually decided to come right out and say it. Even if they hated him, they deserved to know the truth, deserved to know about the danger that walked beside them every day.

"Do you know what happened on that night the Kyuubi attacked 13 years ago?" They all startled at the abrupt change of topic, exchanging uncertain stares, but Shikamaru narrowed his eyes as his mind worked overdrive.

Hesitantly, Sakura spoke up. "The Fourth Hokage killed it, didn't he? He saved the village." But they were surprised when Naruto shook his head at her.

"No, he didn't. That's just what they want you to believe. It's not possible to kill a tailed beast. They're beings of chakra; they'd only be re-born again in few years. No, he didn't kill it. He had no choice but to seal it away. It's still alive and it's in this village, trapped."

Their eyes widened at this statement, and there was a small amount of panic as they considered this. They didn't want to think about what would happen if it were to be set free, if it was indeed true.

But how would Naruto know that anyway? Did someone tell him? And why were they suddenly talking about The Nine-Tails when they were talking about Naruto?

Did he have something to do with the attack? But that wasn't possible, Naruto would have just been born then, he couldn't have done something.

Shikamaru had already formed an idea in his mind of what they were talking about and he sighed slightly, ruffled his hair with his hand and dragging it over his face as he thought to himself,

' _Troublesome…'_

He locked eyes with Naruto for a moment and he gave an almost undetectable nod to show that his line of thought was most likely correct.

"It seems Shikamaru has already figured it out, haven't you?" They all turned to look at the boy in question, but he had eyes only for Naruto.

He was watching, gauging, observing him with intense eyes. He gave a slight nod to show that he had indeed figured it out and Naruto let out a deep breath.

"I'm not really surprised, you know. Should've known you'd be able to do that. You're smart Shikamaru, why don't you explain." They turned towards him again in confusion, watching him expectantly.

Shikamaru didn't do anything, he didn't look away or break his concentration on the boy in front of him. He continued watching, but it didn't seem Naruto was too unnerved.

They waited with bated breaths as Shikamaru opened his mouth to reply.

"The Fourth Hokage couldn't kill the Nine-Tails, so he had to seal it away. If The Nine-Tails is a being of Chakra, then an object simply wouldn't do, it wouldn't be able to hold its immense power, and the object would explode within a year. So he had to seal it inside someone, right?. A person. He'd have to seal it inside a baby."

Their eyes widened as they finally caught on. Now it was quite obvious and they knew what he was going to say before he even said it.

"That baby was you, wasn't it Naruto? The Fourth Hokage sealed The Nine-Tailed Fox inside you."

They were silent. It was a shocked sort of silence, but it was broken when Naruto sighed as he turned away from them.

"Yes, that's right. The Nine-Tails is inside me. It always has and it always will be. I'm it's jinchuuriki. It's part of me now, I guess."

They didn't say anything.

Everything suddenly clicked into place and they were given a clear view for the first time.

It all made perfect sense. It was so obvious now that they knew and they didn't know how they never noticed before. He was born the same day as the attack happened, it explained the villager's whispers of 'monster', why he lived alone, why he had no parents.

It all made perfect sense.

Of course, they'd learned at the academy what a jinchuuriki was.

A human sacrifice. Someone to be sacrificed for the greater good. They were sacrificed for the village because one person lost is nothing in comparison to thousands of people lost.

They were used as tools for the village to obtain whatever they wanted; it was used for their own selfish gains.

The price for being a jinchuuriki was worse than death itself.

Those who were hosts for Tailed Beasts were fated to be hated by their own people, their village of whom they should have been able to trust.

They would forever be outcasts in their own village.

They would live a life of hatred, they'd never know what love is like. They would forever live in darkness, in a life consisting only of pain, sadness, and sorrow.

It was a sad existence, a sad life to live, a sad burden one would have to bear.

A grown man would probably have broken under the pressure and hatred he would receive, and yet, how could a mere child, who's lived his whole life in hatred, possibly cope?

It was only then they realized, he hadn't coped at all.

He was broken, maybe not in the obvious way, but he was broken, he was bruised, he was scarred. One simply did not come out from a situation like that completely unscathed and if he was, then _that'd_ be a cause for concern.

The only sound heard was the wind that was blowing in their hair and with every second that went by, Naruto became more nervous and anxious.

And though he expected it, he didn't know what he'd do if he was rejected by the only friends he'd ever had. If they did, then he had nothing, and he was certain he'd never be able to recover from that.

It seems his friends had the same thought as he, and they exchanged a few glances, though they didn't speak.

Finally, though, Sakura found the courage to do so.

"That's why they hate you, isn't it?" She said, more out of the need to break the silence than anything else. Naruto sighed, for what was probably the thousand time that day, as he nodded, but he was now looking at his feet on the ground instead of at them.

"Then they're wrong!" A voice suddenly shouted and they were all surprised to see it was Ino. Naruto snapped his head up to look at her in shock.

"They're wrong to hate you for something you didn't do! You didn't attack the village, it was the Nine-Tails! Just because you have it inside you doesn't mean you're the same!" Her voice was filled with passion, and for a moment all he could do was stare.

He was confused.

Shouldn't they hate him? Shouldn't they be yelling at him to go away? That's what they all did, so why were they different? But he was also filled with relief because _maybe_ he could finally have real friends who didn't judge him before getting to know him.

"She's right, you know." It was Sasuke who spoke and Naruto turned to look at him. "You're not the Fox. Your two completely separate beings, with completely separate personalities. It may reside inside you, but it doesn't make you one."

They watched as Naruto stared at them, emotions flashing in his eyes so fast, it was impossible to name them all. They watched as he frowned and they could practically _smell_ his confusion from where they stood.

"But shouldn't you hate me? Isn't that what you're supposed to do? Yell at me to go away? I don't get it." They could see he didn't mean anything by it. He was simply confused that they weren't running for the hills now that they knew his secret.

It made them angry at the prospect that it was the villagers who had caused this mentality and self-worth in their friend. That he thought they'd rather kill themselves then even be in the same room as him.

It was disgusting and the respect they had for their village drastically lowered, to the point they had no respect at all.

"We don't hate you Naruto. You aren't a demon and I wouldn't care even if you were!" It was Lee who's spoken the words, the grin back on his face.

Naruto stared at them with wide eyes as Shikamaru stepped forward.

"Yes, that's right. You aren't the Kyuubi, Naruto. You never were and you never will be. You are who you are. I say the villagers are too ignorant to see that." They all nodded in agreement.

Naruto only stared, the confusion clear on his face.

He didn't seem to understand. He seemed like he didn't want to believe them. He was too shocked to see that they had so easily accepted him. And that only made them angrier and sadder on Naruto's behalf.

"B-but, why? I don't get it…why don't you hate me too?" He asked softly, almost in a whisper. He was now looking at the ground and so he couldn't see the looks his friends exchanged.

Eventually, it was Neji who spoke up. "Because Naruto, we _know_ that you aren't the Kyuubi. You are Naruto Uzumaki, _not_ some demon. And that I can say with certainty."

"And besides, if you really were the demon, then wouldn't you have killed us all a long time ago?" Surprisingly, it was Shino that spoke.

Naruto didn't speak, didn't know what to say and his friends let him think.

"Naruto…" Naruto looked up to stare at Sasuke, who'd been the one who'd spoken. He was standing there, watching him with sadness and guilt and so many more emotions showing in his eyes. His voice was soft, and gentle, so…unlike him. Out of character.

"Naruto, I'm sorry. For everything. You didn't deserve everything that happened to you. It's unfair, I know. I probably didn't help with the way I was acting. You saved me Naruto. You saved me from myself. And it's not just me, I'm sure. You helped every one of us. Just by being near us, you brought us hope and light. If it wasn't for you, I probably would have fallen further into the darkness. And how do I repay you? By being mean. I didn't realize. I'm sorry, Naruto. I really am. And I truly hope we can start all over again."

Naruto was stiff with shock. He hadn't ever thought he would hear Sasuke, of all people, apologize, or even say something remotely like that at all. He was even more surprised to see Neji step forward and begin to talk.

"It goes for me as well, Naruto. There was a time when I thought of everyone as beneath me. I hated everyone and I would do anything to become stronger, even going so far as to hurt my own family." His eyes shifted over to Hinata, who blushed but shot him a bright grin nonetheless, one which he returned with a small smile himself and that made Naruto look to the side, suddenly uncomfortable.

"But you saved me, Naruto. When you beat me in the Chunnin exam, you showed me that not everything is decided by fate or destiny and I saw you in a new light. I'm eternally grateful for that. And then I saw how the villagers treated you and I found out the reason why…I see what happened to me was nothing compared to you. My respect for the village decreased. It would be an honor to be friends with you Naruto." He finished with a gentle smile.

Sakura spoke next. "Oh, Naruto, I'm so sorry! I can't even begin to imagine the pain you must've gone through. The loneliness you must've felt. The abuse you endured. To be kicked down again and again if you did something wrong or if you did nothing at all. To not know the love of family. I have always had my parents and I don't know what I would do if I lost them. The least I could do was be your friend, but I couldn't even do that. My parents always told me to avoid you, they said you were dangerous and there would be consequences if I didn't listen and I didn't even question them. I saw everyone else did it, so I did the same and I didn't think of your feelings or the reason why. I'm terribly sorry Naruto. Really, I am. I realize my mistakes now. I know I don't deserve to be forgiven and I don't think you should, after everything I did. But you deserve to at least hear my apology."

"I'm sorry as well, Naruto. I've been a jerk to you. I humiliated you in the academy, more than once and it took you to beat me in the Chunnin exam for me to realize it. I'm ashamed. I'm sorry, I never meant anything by it. I was too stubborn to see that I was hurting your feelings and my pride got in the way. I was so full of myself. Sorry." It was Kiba and for once he wasn't yelling, but his voice was quiet, as though afraid to speak any louder, something that was unusual for the brash Inuzuka.

Naruto was overwhelmed.

This wasn't what he expected this to go down at all, and it threw him on a loop and off guard.

He'd been preparing for shouting and screams, for their glares that would replace the love and be filled with hatred. He'd been preparing himself like he'd go to battle.

He'd been prepared for anything but this.

It did warm his heart though, admittedly. Hope and relief flowed through him like rivers, his shoulders relaxing and he felt so much lighter than he'd ever felt before.

Maybe he's finally found friends, real ones who he could count on to catch him when he falls, to not abandon him like so many have before them.

Maybe he could finally be free.

His friends were watching him, gauging his reactions and feelings. His shoulders sunk down against him, a breath he seemed unaware of escaping him, his eyes closing in apparent relief, and something was _different_.

It wasn't a bad different, but it was difference nonetheless. It was like something had suddenly been dropped, like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders and it may very well have been, considering.

And it was such a relief to them too that they had helped, no matter how small it may have been, though if they were to ask Naruto, he'd probably say that it was the most they could have ever done.

At least it seemed that their friend wasn't completely broken by the actions of others, so that was something, hopefully, something they could further help with.

But it seemed they weren't quite done yet with the whole monologue thing and Naruto snapped his eyes open to stare at Hinata when she took a step forward.

She halted a little when she saw him staring, but determination surged her forward and she shook her own embarrassment away for the moment.

"I'm sorry Naruto," She spoke softly without even a hint of her stutter and Naruto frowned as he tried to figure out why _she_ was apologizing.

She continued though, ignoring his confusion for the moment.

"I've never hated you, even if it might look like it sometimes. I-i admire you, actually." The admission was a little hard and when Naruto stared at her in surprise, she was tempted to run away with her tails between her legs, but she knew she would regret it if she did, so she forced herself to continue, despite the blush on her cheeks.

"You've always been such a happy and loud and confident person, I may have envied that. But it was what I liked about you. It takes immense courage to go through all the pain the villagers have put you through, yet you never sought revenge. You're too good-hearted. It may have been a mask, I see that now, but I truly believe that everything in your heart is pure. I don't see evil when I look at you. You really are a good person. I can't see how the villagers ever saw a monster in you when it is so far from the truth."

With every word that she spoke, she took a small step forward, and for every step that she took, his eyes widened a little more.

She gave a small smile as she continued.

"I wanted to be your friend, Naruto. I have always wanted to be your friend. I sometimes saw how your eyes would flash with sadness and loneliness, I saw the villagers contempt, yet I did nothing. I was too shy to attempt to go near you. I was scared you wouldn't like me, that you'd be irritated with my company. It was a foolish thought, I realize now. Maybe if I had come to you earlier, you would've had a better life, and it's something I'll always regret. But if it isn't too late, I would very much like you be your friend now."

By the end of her long speech, she was standing just a few feet in front of him, her hands reaching out and he took a small step backward, his eyes wide in shock.

Her hands stilled a little, hesitating only a moment at the motion, before she continued to reach out to touch and this time he let her, no matter how hard it was for him because he was willing to _try._

He couldn't quite stop his flinch though, nor his tensing muscles, but the longer she held his shoulder, the more he relaxed, realizing that it didn't hurt.

Which did come as a surprise.

All the times he's been held, it always brought pain with it, but not this time. Slowly, ever so slowly so he could still follow her movement, she took her other hand to set on his other shoulder and equally as slowly, she brought him for a hug.

Immediately, he went stiff and she was worried she'd overstepped her boundaries. She was about to apologize and let him go when he sank into her hug, his arms slowly wrapping around her as well and she was so full of relief, she could just about drop down on the ground.

She didn't though and she only tightened her arms around him when she heard a shaky breath escape him, sounding on the edge of tears.

She brought her lips to his ears and she whispered softly. "It's alright to cry, Naruto. You deserve it." _And so much more._ She added quietly in her mind, but it seemed it was all it took for him to break down as big, broken, relieved sobs broke through, and it tugged at her heartstrings to hear it.

It seemed like the strength he had in his legs stopped and he slowly sank down on his knees, but seeing as his grip on her hadn't released in the slightest, she was also forced to drop down on her knees.

Not that she minded, of course.

She'd almost forgotten the audience they had when she noticed that said audience had all began walking towards them, but she was so into the moment, she couldn't find the strength to be embarrassed about it.

She looked up at them to see her cousin looking at her with a proud smile and the rest looking at them with something akin to fondness, every one of them with soft smiles of their own.

She almost blushed under their stares, but she turned away before she could and when she looked at Naruto again, a smile came to her own face and she totally forgot her embarrassment.

He was still buried in the hug, and he didn't look up even when their friends sat down beside them. It was Shino who spoke the next words, the words he'd only dreamed of hearing and even as stoic as he was, it seemed he couldn't quite stop his lips from turning either.

"I do think I speak for all of us when I say this, Naruto. You are as much human as any of us. You have emotions. You may feel happy, angry, sad, desperate, hopeless and so many more. And that _is_ what makes us human." They could all agree on that and they watched as Naruto slowly turned to look at them, his eyes dry with tears, making the baby blue that much more prominent.

They watched as he looked at all of them carefully and hopefully. He turned to look at Hinata once more, however, when she spoke up again. She looked into his eyes, so full of hope and relief and sadness and hopelessness, that it physically hurt her very being.

She did promise to herself, though, that she would find _every one_ of those villagers who had _dared ever_ lay a hand on him and she would _personally_ fray them _alive_.

She shared none of her thoughts, however, and she smiled softly at his innocent expression and she had to wonder how he could stay so pure, even after all the evil the world had thrown at him.

"It's okay Naruto. You don't need to hide behind a mask anymore. We will accept whoever you and whatever you want to be. And maybe, if you'll allow us, we may even see a real smile on your face."

His eyes teared up again and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop them from running down his cheeks. But it wasn't like before. He didn't sob this time, couldn't really, didn't have many tears left, these weren't ones of heartbreak, no.

These were of relief.

Relief that he had finally, after so many years alone, he'd found someone. People he could trust, who would follow him whatever he may choose and who he would follow in return, relief that he didn't need to hide, that there were no more secrets between them, that he could finally, truly be free.

Knowing he wasn't alone anymore was all the assurance he needed. This contact, this first real human contact, his first hug, all of it, without bringing the usual pain he acquainted with it.

He opened his eyes, drawing back from the hug a little to see his friends, all 11 of them, sitting around them, smiles on their faces, joys in their eyes, happiness in the air and he slowly smiled back, for the first time in many years, it wasn't a fake.

This time it reached his eyes.

And this time maybe it will stay that way.

'Cause now he had friends, the true ones that will stay by his side no matter what.

That is all he could ever ask for and all he ever needed to have.

That was enough for him.

* * *

 **..There you have it…**

 **I was trying to get all of Naruto friends to say something, but I didn't quite know what to write. It was really hard, but I manage in the end.**

 **I hope you liked it…though it wasn't the best, and I'm sure I could have done better, but oh well.**

 **I would appreciate it if you would leave a Review.**

 **I want to be better at writing my stories, so it might be more interesting and better to read, so your opinion would greatly be appreciated.** **Though English isn't my mother language, so if there are any mistakes, do say so and I'll fix it.**

 **And this isn't supposed to be romance, even though it may look like it at the end, for as much as I ship Naruto and Hinata, I just hate romance of any kind.**

 **And yes, I do know that the characters are way out-of-character, but just so you know, I'm not really that good at writing them with their personalities, I find it hard, but it's my story anyway, and I guess it was necessary for this, so...yeah.**

 **Well, that's it.**


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